Review of Five Broken Cameras (2011) by Walter M — 25 Feb 2014

In the heartbreaking and deeply moving documentary, "5 Broken Cameras," Emad Burnat, like any proud father, uses a video camera to record every single waking moment of his fourth son Gilbreel in order to embarrass him later when he is an adult. As the owner of one of the only ones in his village, he is also the unofficial chronicler of events such as the circus. And since this is the occupied West Bank we are talking about, that extends to the building of the security wall which threatens to divide the village lands to make way for illegal Israeli settlements. The villagers respond with protests that are mostly peaceful and a little ingenious in places, and are joined by Israeli and other international activists.

Even though it is a little repetitive(perhaps by design), especially on Emad reminding us about the importance of the land, as he and other villagers depend on harvesting olives for their livelihood, "5 Broken Cameras" also shows in harrowing detail what it is like to live in the occupied territories, as Emad captures some stunning footage while putting himself and his cameras at risk, hence the title, not only for injury, but also jail time. In fact, one of his cameras ends up taking a bullet for him, but that is not what sends him to the hospital(an Israeli one) for an extended stay.